We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ziana Pearson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ziana below.

Ziana, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

In February of 2021, I decided to quit my retail job and pursue my art business full time. I started my online store summer 2020 and my bedroom slowly transitioned into my creative oasis where I would already spend hours on hours creating, I transitioned into my full time entrepreneurship less than a year later, not because business was booming but because I knew and still know my true passion and calling. Having the creative freedom and time was a breath of fresh air for someone that’s been on solidified schedules for their whole life. Today I’m back working a side 9-5 but if I could go back and do anything differently I’d get way more sleep. I think the pressure of having to supply art/content to support my livelihood impacted my mental state and sense of worth, feeling I was nothing more than the work I produced. I know when my time does come to be my own boss again I’ll be in a way better place have had this past experience. Having a more balanced and true awareness of self has made my art and I fall back in love on healthier terms. I know I have all the time I need to nurture my talents.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Ziana (they/them) I’m a queer identifying Haitian-American creative residing from the Northside of Chicago; In the beginning phases of my art journey I began exploring the world of photography in high school leading to receiving a Gold Key award in the Scholastic Award for Art + Writing in 2016. The affirmation and confidence that followed receiving artistic accolades inspired me to pursue new mediums such as acrylic painting and illustration. Come 2020, I launched my first online shop/portfolio intending to gain more exposure and connect to other creatives. Now in my mid-twenties, I am a multifaceted creator in all mediums previously mentioned including; airbrush design, murals, and herbalism. I seek to continue learning and expanding myself creatively while making safe, creative spaces for other melanated queer artists. Im extremely proud of my growth as a person as well an artist and glad I’m able to acknowledge how far I’ve come.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I think the most rewarding aspect of being a creative is the fact that this is my destined place of comfort. I don’t have to show up as anyone/anything but myself when I work and it’s a time where I can truly be vulnerable. As we live in a society and world full of labels and norms; my creative world is solely my own where I can showcase myself and voice on my own terms. All the pieces I do have a story attached, an emotion. There’s a deep therapeutic component in creating something new and authentic with your own hands, and as I grow so will my artistic endeavors because we are one and the same.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I believe my overall mission is to get to a point where I can have enough to live comfortably and redistribute onto the community/city that made me the person I am today. Looking forward, I want to curate spaces where the artists’ identity and communal trust can flourish. We consume so much on a daily basis that I think over time a lot of our morals and visions of success are based on what we see the 1% materially possess and how we can attain that fantasy lifestyle. One thing that we can’t deny is that as people, we need others. We need community in order to succeed and to share these successes with, especially people of the diaspora ! Im grateful to have amazing friends that support and love me and are 100% apart of my Soul mission in creating chosen family and connections that inspire healing and growth. In both personal and creative aspects of my life.

Contact Info:

• Website: artbyziana.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artbyziana/